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No. 751,931. -.PAT-ENTED FEB. 9, 1904.

W. E. MATTHEW.

TORPEDO PLACER.

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, UNITED STATES Patented. February 9, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

I TOHPEDO-PLAOER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 751,931, dated February9, 1904.

Application filed November 13, 1903; gerial No. 181,057. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TILLIAM E. MATTHEW, a citizen of the United States,residing at Bucyrus, in the countyof Crawford and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Torpedo-Racers; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact descriptionof the. invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art towhich it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has relation to torpedoplacers, and more particularly to anappliance adapted for placing torpedoes upon railwaytracks; and myinvention consists of certain novel features of combination andconstruction of parts, the preferred form or materialization whereofwill be, hereinafter fully set forth, and pointedout in the claims.

The prime object of my invention is to provide reliably efiicient meanswhereby a tor pedo may be placed in position upon the top of atrack-rail ready to be detonated by the wheels of the next train.

A further object, among others, is to enable the operator to readily andreliably place a plurality of rail-torpedoes in their operativepositions, as will be necessary at times in carrying out any adoptedsignal-code.

Other objects and advantages will be hereinafter made clearly apparent,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are made a partof this application, and in which Figure 1 illustrates a side elevationof my invention as applied to use in locating a torpedo upon atrack-rail. Fig. 2 is an end view of the appliance shown in Fig. 1. Fig.3 is a detail view showing the holder proper for an individual torpedo,partly in section. v

For convenience in referring to the various details of my invention andaccessories deemed necessary to illustrate a practical applicationthereof to use numerals will be employed, the same numeral referring toa similar part throughout the several views.

Referring to the various elements of my invention, 1 indicates thehandle portion, which may be made of any preferred character and isadapted to receive the tapered shank 2, which is secured to orintegrally formed with the central ring-like member 3, there being aplurality of said members, as indicated by the numerals 4: and 5,arranged and secured side by side in a parallel plane, said membersbeing preferably uniformly separated, as by the tubularseparating-blocks 6, and it is obvious that by passing the locking-bolt7 through said tubular members 6 and through registering aperturesprovided in the members 3, 4:, and 5 said members may be very securelylocked, in operative combination, as by the retaining-nut 8 upon saidbolt.

Each of the tubular members 6 has integrally formed therewith orotherwise connected thereto the depending lugs or fingers 9, designed tobe received by and telescope with the movable sockets 10, said socketsbeing provided at their lower ends with the cuplike head 11, the openpart of the cup-shaped head being directed downward, as clearly shown inFig. 1 and other views.

The head 11 is held normally outward by the spring 12, which is disposedwithin the socket 10 and designed to hear at its free end against thefinger 9, as will be clearly obvious by reference to the drawings. Theretainingscrew 13 isprovided to hold the socket upon the finger 9, whilethe compensating slot 14:

is also provided in the socket, through which said limiting-screw 13 isextended. By the construction thus presented it is obvious that thesocket 10 is left free to play loosely upon the finger 9 for a purposehereinafter more particularly set forth. The object of the cupshapedhead 11 is obvious, though it may be stated that the body portion 15 ofthe torpedo is adapted to be received by said head, and thereby heldagainst any lateral movement, insuring that the torpedo-body will bereliably directed into its proper position upon the track-rail. Thetorpedo-body, as is common, is provided with theanchoring spring-arms16, diametrically disposed upon opposite sides of the body, whereby acontiguous part of the track-rail 17 will be engaged.

The free ends of the spring-arms 16 are designed to be entered into thepockets 18, which are preferably integrally formed by'striking out asuitable lip from the lower side of each of the members 3, 4, and 5, itbeing understood that said pockets upon the members 4' and 5 are to bedirected inward, while the pockets upon the member 3 are two in numberand lie in the same plane with the pockets upon the outer members, andare thus designed to reliably hold the free ends of the arms 16.

I desire to call particular attention to the location and arrangement ofthe pockets 18, inasmuch as it will be observed that the open part orreceptacle provided by the pocket is inclined away from the members 3,4:, and 5, so that the free ends of the springs will be more readilyreleased when the body portion 15 is directed upward.

By reference to Fig. 3 it will be observed that the spring-arms 16consist of a single piece of suitable spring metal secured at one ormore points to the body portion 15, as by the rivet 19 or otherwise.

In Fig. 1 I have shown one of the torpedoes as being discharged from theholder or located in position upon the track-rail, which result isaccomplished by simply forcing the holder downward so that thetrack-rail will come in contact with the under side of the body portion,and thereby force an upward movement of said body against the tension ofthe spring 12, causing the socket and its accompanying head to moveupward sufliciently to withdraw the ends of the spring-arms 16 out ofthe pockets in which they have been disposed, when the tensile propertyof said arms will cause the free ends thereof when released to springinto engagement with a contiguous part of the track-rail, and thus leavethe torpedo in position.

The handle portion 1, it will be understood, is of proper length toenable the operator to stand upon the end of the car and reach downward,so that the torpedo-holder will be disposed directly above thetrack-rail, when by a sudden downward thrust of the handle and itsaccompanying parts the track will be struck by the under side of thetorpedo with suflicient force to overcome the tension of the spring 12and permit the head 11 to move upward sufficiently to disengage the saidspringarms, when they will instantaneously engage the track-rail, andthus leave the torpedo located at the desired point upon the rail.

It will be obvious that the torpedo-holder proper may be made so as tohold a plurality of torpedoes, thus enabling the operator to locate asmany torpedoes in position upon the rail as will be desirable to meetthe requirements of each situation. It will be seen that the cup-likehead 11 will reliably hold the torpedo against slipping laterally, andthus insure that said body portionwill be in proper position whenreleased from said holder by the disengagement of the arm 16.

By reference to Fig. 2 of the drawings it will be observed that themembers 3, 4, and 5 are ring-like in formation, and this construction isvery desirable and important in providing the torpedo-holders, inasmuchas said rings are not liable to engage or bind the track-rail or any ofthe fish-plates or securingbolts thereof, as is often the case where therings are dispensed with and straight clownwardly extending armsemployed in lieu thereof.

In cases where straight depending arms are used instead of the ring-likemembers 3, 4:, and 5 a slight twisting movement of the handle 1 willcause two of the arms to pinch or tightly engage the track-rail, withthe result that the instrument is violently forced out of thehands ofthe operator and lost, whereas when the ring-like members areused theyat all times present a curved edge to the trackrail and contiguous partsthereof and the tendency is that they will ride out of all pinching orengaging action and that even should there be a slight twisting movementof the handle said ring-like members will act substantially in the samemanner as wheels and prevent frictional engagement between the same andthe track-rail and other parts. I desire, therefore, to call specialattention to this novel construction which I have provided for thetorpedo-holding arms. The employment of the ring-like members 3, 4, and5 fit my torpedo-placer for instant use, it being immaterial which sideis placed forward, inasmuch as the result will be the same. Very littlecare is necessary in placing the torpedo upon the track-rail, as allthat is required is to turn the handle 1 so that the members 6 will bedisposed substantially at right angles to the I00 plane'of thetrack-rail; but should said parts not be truly at right angles theperipheral edges of the ring-like members will tend to act as guides,and thus bring the torpedo in Y proper position to engage the top of therail, 5 when a slight pressure will release the springarms from thepockets or seats 18, and thereby leave the torpedo anchored in itsoperative position.

Believing that the construction and manner I I of using my improvedtorpedo-placer will thus be made clearly apparent, further reference tothe details is deemed unnecessary.

Having thus fully described my invention,

what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The herein-described torpedo-holder: comprising a plurality ofmembers 3, f and 5; suitable means to connect said holders to the handleportion; downwardly-extending lugs or fingers 9; suitable socketsreceiving said fingers; means to normally hold said sockets outward; acup-shaped head carried by said sockets and a pair of pockets inclinedtoward each other for each of said heads whereby the free ends of thetorpedo spring-arms will be secured by said pockets and readily releasedwhen the tension'of said spring is overcome, all combined substantiallyas specified and for the purpose set forth.

2. A torpedo holder and placer comprising a suitable handle, a pluralityof ring-like members as 3, i and 5 properly spaced or separated toreceive a torpedo and a contiguous part of the track-rail and meanslocated intermediate a pair of said ring-like members designed to holdthe torpedo in position to be released substantially as specified andfor the purpose set forth.

3. The herein-described torpedo holder and releaser comprising asuitable handle having a plurality of ring or disk likemembers properlyseparated to receive a contiguous part of r the track-rail; recessesprovided near the peripheral edges of said ring members designed toreceive the ends of the torpedo-clamping spring and means adapted toyieldingly hold the torpedo in discharging position whereby when thelower side of the torpedo is forced against the track-rail the ends ofthe springs will be withdrawn to instantly engage the rail as and forthe purpose set forth.

i. A torpedo holder and placer comprising a suitable handle and alsohaving a plurality of ring or disk like members 3, t and 5 properlyseparated; pockets or recesses provided in the approximating faces ofsaid ring memhers adapted to receive the free ends of thetorpedo-clamping springs; a spring-cushion between said ring-likemembers adapted to hold the ends of the clamping-springs downward insaid recesses whereby when the lower side of the torpedo is forcedagainst the trackrail the ends of the clamping-springs will be releasedto engage the track-rail substantially as specified and for the purposeset forth.

5. The herein-described torpedo holding and releasing device comprisingasuitable controlling-handle having a plurality of ring or disk likemembers 3, 4 and 5; suitable means to hold said members properlyseparated and in union with the handle; a finger 9 carried between eachpair of ring members; a telescoping member cooperating with said fingerand means to hold said cooperating member normally extended whereby whenthe torpedo -body is placed against the lower end of said telescopingmember and the anchoring-springs entered in suitable recesses in acontiguous part of the ring or disk like members said telescoping memberwill move upward against its spring sufliciently to release the ends ofthe torpedo-clamping members, all substantially as specified and for thepurpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM E. MATTHEW. Witnesses:

R. V. SEARS, EMMA KEPLINGER.

